August 9, 2022 - As part of PG&E's ongoing efforts to prevent wildfires, we are strengthening the electric system with stronger poles and covered powerlines. We are also undergrounding approximately 10,000 miles of distribution powerlines in and near high fire-threat areas. These efforts are known as system hardening.

This system hardening work will occur over several years across thousands of distribution lines in the highest fire-threat areas, and will:

• Help reduce the risk of wildfires
• Enhance long-term safety, especially during times of high fire-threat
• Significantly improve reliability during winter weather
• In certain cases, reduce Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) impacts where hardening can reduce wildfire risks

Our wildfire safety and undergrounding efforts are making our system safer, more resilient and positioning us to better serve our customers and respond to our state's evolving climate challenge.

Watch this videoOpens in new Window. for more information on our system hardening work. For an interactive map showing complete and planned PG&E system hardening improvements coming up in your area, visit PSPS Planning Maps.

10,000-mile initiative

In the summer of 2021, we announced a new, multiyear infrastructure safety initiative to underground approximately 10,000 miles of powerlines in and near high fire-threat areas.

We are prioritizing undergrounding in areas where we can have the greatest impact on reducing wildfire risk and PSPS outages for our customers. In addition, we are focusing on critical facilities, like hospitals. We are also looking at a variety of factors including:

• How accessible the area is during an emergency, in addition to the type of terrain
• Constructability
• Existing infrastructure (such as the number of services and transformers)
• General vegetation in the area, along with the potential for trees to fall into lines
• Reliability
• Climate challenges
• Other concerns

We are planning our expanded undergrounding effort in areas that meet at least several of these considerations and will deliver the highest level of safety for our customers.

We are continuing to develop additional details on our 10,000-mile undergrounding plan. Our goal is to significantly expand our underground miles annually, increasing to approximately 1,200 miles of undergrounding per year.

Where is this work happening?

Nearly one-third of the electric lines that provide our customers with power are now in High Fire-Threat District (HFTD) areas.

This year, our system hardening work will occur across 470 distribution line miles in locations facing the highest wildfire risk. To ensure we are addressing the highest wildfire risk areas as conditions continue to change and evolve, we are using a new, state-of-the-art technology and prioritization model.

2022-2023 Undergrounding Work Plan by County

The following in a list of counties with undergrounding work planned, under construction or recently completed (in 2022). This includes work planned for 2022-2023. Please note, we are still identifying future undergrounding miles and determining the sequence of the work.

For locations of work, download the statewide map of planned undergrounding work for 2022-23 (PDF, 1.22 MB)PDF. Opens in new Window..

Additional information on our 10,000-mile undergrounding program can be found at pge.com/undergrounding and in our 2022 Wildfire Mitigation Plan.